[Verse 1]
Down in the canyon where the shadows crawl,
I buried my sins ‘neath the chapel wall.
The preacher said, "Boy, your soul’s too black,"
So I saddled my horse, never looked back.
Dust in my lungs and blood on my hands,
I ain’t been holy since I crossed those lands.
The sun don’t rise where I lay my head,
Just the hiss of a snake and the moan of the dead.
[Chorus]
I whispered a rattlesnake prayer to the sky,
With a .45 soul and a vulture eye.
If the devil’s watchin’, he knows I’m near,
But I ain’t afraid—he's the one who should fear.
Yeah, I ride through the fire with a grin and a dare,
Singin’ low... that rattlesnake prayer.
[Verse 2]
Met a woman in black at the old ghost mine,
Said, "Your fate’s been written in a twisted line."
She kissed like poison, eyes full of war,
Then vanished like smoke through the swinging door.
The law’s behind me, the past ahead,
Every mile I ride, I raise the dead.
But the road don’t end and the guilt don’t fade,
Just the wind and the bones and the price I’ve paid.
[Chorus]
I whispered a rattlesnake prayer to the sky,
With a .45 soul and a vulture eye.
If the devil’s watchin’, he knows I’m near,
But I ain’t afraid—he's the one who should fear.
Yeah, I ride through the fire with a grin and a dare,
Singin’ low... that rattlesnake prayer.
[Bridge]
No saints in the saddle, no light in my trail,
Just whiskey and thunder and a coffin of shale.
But if judgment comes on a red dust wind,
I'll look him in the eye—and I won’t bend.
[Final Chorus]
I whispered a rattlesnake prayer to the sky,
With a .45 soul and a vulture eye.
Hell’s gettin’ colder, and heaven don’t care,
So I ride on alone...
with my rattlesnake prayer.